The subject invention relates to single track vehicles and, more particularly, to apparatus for limiting the amount of feedback force which can be exerted on the driver by a foot pedal extension/retraction system and for responding to vehicle deceleration to halt forward movement of the foot pedal which might injure the driver.
An improved single track vehicle is taught in my U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,257,671 and 5,628,379. During five years of development work on improvements in single track vehicle design, a number of problems have persisted related to control of the extendable/retractable side wheel system. Such a system may employ a foot pedal lever controlled side wheel extension mechanism, as well as a side wheel retraction mechanism employing a spring or a spring like mechanism, such as a gas strut. In the side wheel retraction mode, the gas strut pushes the foot pedal aft as the gas strut extends. To extend the side wheels, the foot pedal lever is driven forward with the feet pressing against the foot rests of the foot pedal lever, overcoming the force exerted by the gas strut.
One of the problems with such prior systems occurs when the side wheels transfer a force to the driver's feet which is so great that the driver cannot counteract it with his legs. This situation typically occurs when the vehicle is improperly driven in the held-up by side wheel mode, such as turning a corner with the vehicle leaning to the outside of the corner rather than the inside of the corner. Even with the best driver, when starting out on a sloped roadbed and turning in the up-slope direction, such tuning may be unavoidable.
Another problem occurs in the event of a sudden stop of the vehicle, as may be experienced in a head-on crash. In such case, inertia may cause the foot pedal lever to be driven forward and into the driver's legs causing serious injury. My prior designs addressed this problem by use of a hook or latch mechanism to hold the foot pedal lever, and hence the side wheels, in the retracted position. Such a latch mechanism is shown in FIG. 29 and requires driver activation of the foot pedal lever to release the lever from its latched position. This latch mechanism has the disadvantage that it only works if the foot pedal lever is in the fill aft position. In addition, the operation of the mechanical system is not seamless and requires more leg travel to activate, which detracts from the available leg travel for lowering the side wheels.